Thursday, October 25, 2012

Landings Grand Prix Review

INTRODUCTION

This post is book length, so I've decided to use "Chapter" headings :). It should make some good bedtime reading. Thanks to Virgil Graves and Steph for their photographic contributions, and to the McClarys, Dances, DeSousas, Blythes, Sue Weiss, Ted Watrous, Nancy Sheppard and the many others who came out in support! Click here for additional photos of the event.

Luke Andreae of Punta
Gorda posted a 6-2, 6-3 win over Jeff Solomon, a quality player from Cape
Coral, in the Men’s 35 Singles. Armor Person also scored one for the home team
when he downed Keith Soifer of Coconut Creek 6-1, 6-1 in the Men’s 50 Singles.

In the home-versus-home matches, Bob Green of Pelican Preserve
took out Charles Van Middlesworth of Gateway 6-1, 6-2, and Terry See of
Cypress Lake fell to Steve Shortridge of Colonial, 6-2, 6-1, both in the Men’s
60 Singles.

John Jerome

John Jerome of Wildcat Run dropped a tight one to Johann Saurbier
of Naples, 2-6, 6-4, 1(6), in the Men’s 45 Singles. Also in the 45s, MAD
Academy general, Mark Davis, took a tumble in the Men’s 45 Singles, falling to
Adam Zastempowski of Nokomis, 1-6, 1-6.

Men’s Open

Luis Duco

The big hitters in the Men’s Open Division took to the
courts late Friday, and local Pro Leaguer Tyler Owens of Fiddlesticks fell to
Luis Duco of Weston 6-3, 6-4, and Matt Maloney of Punta Gorda, a newcomer to
Pro League this season, was out-dueled by Franco Mata (3) of Naples, 6-0, 6-1.

Most of the tournament action took place on Day 2. The women
began play on Saturday, and Erica Cossairt of Cape Coral Racquet Club (CCRC)
advanced easily over Karleen Dawson of Oakland, Florida, 6-0, 6-0. Erica then
teamed with Dave Rowat, also of CCRC, to edge tourney host, Paul D’Amico and
Chandler Kleinpeter of The Forest, 6-2, 7-5 in the Mixed Open Doubles.

Carolyn Franca

In the best match of the women’s events, Carolyn Franca (1)
edged Elizabeth Burger, 6-4, 7-5. After her victory in Singles, Franca
partnered with Gewan Maharaj in Mixed 40 Doubles to ease past Dawson and Keith
Soifer of Coconut Creek, 6-0, 6-0.

Men’s Open

Erik Turnquist

In the Men’s Open semis, Tye Myers continued to cruise,
downing Luis Duco 6-0, 6-3, but Turnquist faced a determined Franco Mata in his
semi and had to retire at 0-4 in the third set, after splitting the first two
7-5, 4-6.

Franco Mata

Despite the tourney format of tiebreak-set for the third, the two, at
the urging of the crowd, agreed to play a third set with the blessing of
tourney director Paul D’Amico. Turnquist might be regretting that decision now!

Men’s 35

Dave Rowat

The Men’s 35 Singles produced a solid candidate for “Match
of the Day” when Rowat faced Rager in the semis. These two were playing on the
court behind me, and I spent as much time watching their match as I did playing
mine. Well, maybe not quite as much, but it was entertaining!

Denny Rager

The two had never faced each other before, and I thing Dave
caught Denny a bit by surprise, and took the first set 6-4. But Denny is
nothing if not cagey, and he made the necessary adjustments and won the second
6-1. The tiebreak was also close with Dave finally winning it 10-7.

Men’s 45

Jack Steyn

In the Men’s 45s, No.2 Seed Jack Steyn of Bradenton saw his
first action, and passed a stiff test from Zastempowski, winning 7-5, 6-3. Fortunately
for Saurbier, Horacio Rearte (the favorite in the 45s) was a no-show, so
Saurbier’s tough three-setter on Day 1 was enough to get him to the final.

Men’s 50

Jeff Davis

In my division, the Men’s 50s, top-seeded Jeff Davis did
what he typically does, he posted a score (6-1, 6-1) against Don Caprio of
Osprey that suggested the match was easy, but the action on the court said
otherwise. Don appeared to be in the match the entire way, and playing on the
adjacent court, I couldn’t help peaking at the on-court parrying. In the end, Jeff
left Don, much the way he left me the following day, snuggling with ice bags
and wondering how that score ended being so lopsided.

Armor Persons

I had the good fortune of playing my buddy Armor Persons,
who started the first set serving lights out and I had all I could handle to
stay in it. I’m not sure what happened at 3-3 (Armor says the balls got heavy),
but I ended up taking the set 6-3.

Paula Barry & Vivian Landis

Armor didn’t serve quite as well in the second
set and I took that one 6-1. It was a pleasure seeing Paula Barry and Vivian
Landis from The Hideaway in the stands for that one.

Men’s 60

No. 2 Seed Fred Drilling made his tourney debut in the Men’s
60s on Saturday, and Steve Shortridge gave him all he could handle…in the first
set. Steve battled but lost the first set, 5-7, and swallowed a crusty bagel in
the second.

Steve Shortridge

Just for a little
perspective, although Fred is going to be 70 in December, he moves like he’s
45. Just last month, he won the Singles and Doubles titles in the Men’s 70 USTA
National Clay Court Championship in Pinehurst, NC, and earlier in the month,
made it to the final of the ITF World Individual Championships in Croatia. Yep,
he can play!

Bob Green

While Fred and Steve were doing their thing, No.1 Seed Gewan
Maharaj jumped into the fray against Bob Green, and posted a convincing 6-0,
6-2 win. There is a very good reason why Gewan was seeded one, and that’s because
he, too, can flat out play. I believe he has won every Grand Prix 60 Singles event
he has entered this season. But don’t quote me on that…

Men's Open Doubles

Matt Maloney & Luke Andreae

The Doubles also got underway on Day 2, and the Open Doubles
was the most competitive event of the weekend. There were only four matches
played over the two days, but three of those went to third-set super-tiebreaks.

Luis Duco & James Roesch

In the first match played, Luis Duco and James Roesch
scraped by Luke Andreae and Matt Maloney 6-2, 3-6, 1(10). Duco and Roesch ran
into Tyler Owens and Scott Harrington later that afternoon, and this time it
was Tyler and Scott who emerged with the 3-6, 7-6(2), 1(6) victory.

Men’s 40 Doubles

John Koahou & Anthony Hatori

The Men’s 40 Doubles also started with a bang, with Anthony
Hatori (my Pro League partner) and John Koahou of Port St. Lucie, eclipsing Don
Caprio and Adam Zastempowski 6-7, 6-4, 1(8). The winners of the earlier nail-biter
didn’t fare well in their second match again, as Anthony and John fell to top-seeds
Jeff Diggs and Kevin Kearns, 6-4, 6-4.

Jeff Solomon & Johann Saurbier

Meanwhile, on the other half of the 40 Doubles draw, Johann
Saurbier and Jeff Solomon, after dispatching Alex Hermeto of Gateway and John
Ramsey of Kelly Greens (6-2, 6-1), toppled No.2 Seeds Jack Steyn and Mike
Baldwin, 6-4, 6-3.

Men’s 50 Doubles

T. A. & Jim Katterfield

There was much less drama in the Men’s 50 Doubles, as Jim
Katterfield and I (who, by the way, remain undefeated as a team) defeated Steve
Shortridge and Jeff Timmer of Colonial 6-0, 6-4 in the final.

Mixed 40 Doubles

John Ramsey & Elizabeth Ramsey

The Mixed 40 Doubles closed out the action on Saturday, when Kerry Kendrick of Casa Ybel and I, seeded one, beat Elizabeth Burger and John
Ramsey, 6-0, 6-4.

CHAPTER 3

Pro-Am

Dave Peirson & Erica Cossairt

The Sunday morning Pro-Am (click here for pics) is usually one of the highlights of
the Grand Prix Circuit events, and this time was no exception. Sixteen local
tennis lovers teamed up with 16 pros for some friendly competition. When the
rounds were completed, the team of Dave Peirson and Erica Cossairt had claimed
the Pro-Am.

Women’s 45

Erica Cossairt

Speaking of Erica Cossairt, in the Women’s 45s, she proved
to be the ultimate warrior. After having won the first set 6-4 and going up 4-3 against Carolyn Franca, Erica had to take an injury timeout for cramps. After the timeout, she dispensed with the long rallies and aggressively closed out the final set, 6-3.

Men’s Open

Tye Myers

As one might imagine, the Men’s Open Final produced the
biggest fireworks of the weekend…in more ways than one. The quality of the
tennis played by Tye Myers and Franco Mata was all the audience could ask for.
However, the quality of the match was somewhat marred by Franco’s “helicopter,”
uh, I mean racquet, flying through the air, and the smashing display of poor
sportsmanship at the end of the match, as Franco’s racquet was unceremoniously
introduced to the court…multiple times! In any event, Myers won the final 6-2,
6-4, coming from 1-4 down in the final set.

Professional Embarrassment

Exhibit A

Perhaps I was the only one embarrassed, but that display was
not indicative of how USPTA Professionals typically behave, and I hope the
crowd noted that from the behavior of the other players in the event. I
absolutely understand how Franco felt- I wanted to toss my racquet in
frustration a few times- but professionalism must rule at an event so well run
by Paul, his staff, and the volunteers.

Men’s 35

Milos Vasovic

The Men’s 35 final was somewhat anticlimactic, as Dave Rowat
had a tough time recovering from his battle with Denny the previous day. Milos
Vasovic, the Grand Prix Division Leader, took the final 6-0, 6-3.

Men’s 45

Johann Saurbier

Johann Saurbier took the Men’s 45 title in his second
consecutive super-tiebreak, overcoming the game effort from Jack Steyn to win
it, 6-1, 4-6, 1(9), after being down several match points.

Men’s 50

Jeff Davis

Jeff Davis proved to be the class of the Men’s 50s, as he
trounced me 6-1, 6-2. It was the most competitive 6-1, 6-2 drubbing I can
remember experiencing. I believe Jeff made about six unforced errors the entire
match, and four of those came late in the final set.

Men’s 60

Gewan Maharaj

Gewan Maharaj continued to put distance between himself and
the rest of the Grand Prix competitors in the 60s when he got past Fred
Drilling, 7-5, 6-3. Chances are that Gewan will finish the season atop the 60s
rankings.

Men’s Open Doubles

Tyler Owens & Scott Harrington

As with the Open Singles, the Men’s Open Doubles offered the
crowd some stellar play and a dramatic climax to the event. Singles Finalists,
Tye Myers and Franco Mata teamed up to take on Tyler Owens and Scott
Harrington. As was the case throughout the event, the winner of a
super-tiebreak in a previous round, in this case Tyler and Scott, fell in the
subsequent round. Myers and Mata posted a 6-1, 3-6, 1(7) victory.

Men’s 40 Doubles

Kevin Kearns & Jeff Diggs

In the Men’s 40 Doubles Johann Saurbier was going for his
third straight super-tiebreak victory when he and partner Jeff Solomon split
sets with top-seeded Jeff Diggs and Kevin Kearns. It was not to be this day, as
Jeff and Kevin won the match 6-3, 5-7, 1(7). Given Saurbier’s three-tiebreak
endeavor, he earned “Most Dramatic Performer” honors of the weekend.

Men’s 60 Doubles

Terry See

The Men’s 60 Doubles Final provided the spectators plenty of
tennis drama as well. In that one, Larry Gagnon of Plantation and Terry See
took the first set from Fred Drilling and Spike Gonzales of Naples, 6-1. However,
Fred and Spike came back to take the second 6-4, and outlasted Larry and Terry
10-8 in the super-tiebreak.

Mixed Open Doubles

Alejandra Aguilar & Tye Myers

After winning the Pro-Am first thing in the a.m., then
taking the Women’s 45s a bit later, Erica Cossairt went for the triple in Mixed
Open Doubles with Dave Rowat. The phrase, “two out of three ain’t bad” applied
to Erica on Sunday, as Tye Myers completed his triple, by adding the Mixed Open
Doubles title to his Men’s Open Singles and Doubles wins. He and partner
Alejandra Aguilar had little trouble, winning 6-1, 6-1.

Mixed 40 Doubles

Kerry Kendrick

The Mixed 40 Doubles went to Kerry Kendrick and me, as we
took on a tired Carolyn Franca (I don’t think she even ate after her singles
match!) and Gewan Maharaj, who had had a tough one himself with Fred Drilling.
After a rocky start (down 0-3), Kerry and I pulled it together to take the
first 7-5, and then hung on to win the second set 6-2. I’ve got to credit that
win to Kerry’s solid returning.

As always, with any event like the one hosted by The
Landings Yacht, Golf & Tennis Club this past weekend, there have to be a
lot of contributors to make it work. The volunteers at the Landings, the tourney
officials, and event sponsors helped make it a special weekend.

Director Paul D'Amico running show with Landings Head Pro Kim Jones

In addition to the players’ party at, and courtesy of, the
Lazy Flamingo and Welch Tennis, complimentary lunch was served for players on
Saturday as well, courtesy of your local USPTA Pro League.

Mike Baldwin- Grand Prix Chairman

Paul D’Amico (tournament
director), and Mike Baldwin (Grand Prix Chair) proved to be a terrific team arranging
and rearranging draws to accommodate players’ work schedules and circumstances.

Those entities included: New You Lifestyle (with Lora
Ulrich on site providing samples) and advice; First Watch; USPTA Pro League, and Lee
County Sports Authority. Thanks folks! It doesn’t happen without you.

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